NPOST - the National Police Officer Selection Test - But Not Really!

NPOST is used in Utah

For their police written exam, many law enforcement agencies in the U.S. use a test format known as NPOST - the National Police Officer Selection Test. NPOST is a clever marketing label given to a style of test published by a company known as Stanard & Associates, Inc. (not to be confused with the word "standard.") There is no true standard police officer selection test in the U.S.

The NPOST is an entry-level, basic skills test that measures these abilities: Arithmetic, Reading Comprehension, Grammar and Incident Report Writing.

Agencies Using the NPOST

NPOST is used by the Lincoln, Nebraska Police Department

Notable police written exams based upon the NPOST include:

Utah Police Written Exams

Iowa Police Written Exams

Wyoming Police Written Exams

Oregon Police Written Exams

Tennessee Police Written Exams

Montana Police Written Exams

Nebraska Police Written Exams

Virginia Police Written Exams

Illinois Police Written Exams

Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority

Maryland State Police Exam

North Dakota Highway Patrol Exam

Questions Included on NPOST

The NPOST covers basic skills required for police work

There are four sections in this 1 hour, 15 minute-test:

Mathematics - 20 questions in 20 minutes

Word questions requiring basic math - no calculators.

Reading Comprehension - 25 questions in 25 minutes

Read a policy or procedure and answer questions about it based only upon the information presented.

English Grammar - 20 questions in 15 minutes

Choose the best word to complete a sentence or identify the misspelled word in a sentence.

Incident Report Writing - 10 questions in 15 minutes

Read a police incident report and answer questions by writing a clear, accurate and complete sentence.